Getting Lost

Dear Faith Des Peres Community,

Last Wednesday, 40 of us gathered for Ash Wednesday worship and received the mark of ashes on our foreheads.  Never before in my 13 years as pastor of Faith Des Peres have we had 40 people at an Ash Wednesday service.  That's about 1/3 of our community.  Do you think churches of 1500 get 500 people to an Ash Wednesday service?  I don't.  My hope is that your attendance on Ash Wednesday not only symbolizes your commitment to the church, but more importantly symbolizes your commitment to grow closer to God during this season of Lent.  

This Sunday our journey to Jerusalem begins.  This year our theme is "Journey Inward/Journey Forward".  We will examine those areas of our lives that keep us separate from God, and we will take part in spiritual practices that help us grow closer to God.  This is the inward part of our journey.  

The forward part of the journey will turn our attention to others.  The idea is that as we grow closer to God, we will become better followers of Jesus Christ . . .which means serving others and their needs just as Christ did.  During Lent you'll have an opportunity to journey forward in service on February 22 when we make blankets for soldiers, on March 9 at Food Outreach, and at the Adult Discussion Group on February 17 and 24 and March 3 and 10 as we discuss racism, income inequality, and hunger.  And last, but certainly not least,  "Go! Sunday" is April 7.  We will go into the community and take part in service projects around the city.

This week we will focus on the spiritual practice of getting lost.  That may sound like a strange spiritual practice to you, but anything can be a spiritual practice if we allow it to show us what is real, who we really are, and how near God can be when we've lost our way.  In preparation for Sunday, I encourage you to read this Sunday's Gospel reading from Luke 4 about Jesus being in the wilderness for 40 days and nights.  Nothing says lost like being in a wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights.

And finally, if you have not been to church in a while, do not come weekly, or have fallen out of the habit of coming, I encourage you to adopt the spiritual practice of attending church weekly during Lent.  My hope and prayer is that you will grow closer to God at Faith Des Peres and find sustenance for your journey here.

Blessings upon you all, and I hope and pray that I will see you Sunday.

Pastor Annie

PS: Mark these Sundays on your calendar!  February 24 we will have special music by a classical guitarist; March 17 the choir will present a Lent "lessons and carols" type service; March 24 is Palm Sunday-my favorite Sunday of the year and the most important Sunday-don't miss it!, and Easter on March 31.  

Can You Hear Me?

Dear Faith Des Peres Community,

How are your listening skills?  Are you a good listener?  In an interesting TED Talk that you can find here, Julian Treasure talks about how we are "losing our listening."  As the world gets louder, we are tuning people out, even the people we love.

This Sunday, February 10, God gives us a simple command: Listen to him!

I've been thinking about this command all week, both as I've struggled to listen to others and have people listen to me.  You know, there are many things God asks us to do as followers of Jesus, but how often do we think that listening is one of them?  And even though it may seem like one of the easier things to do, it's not.  Most of us prefer talking over listening.  So how can we be better listeners?  I'm convinced God's Word has something to teach us if we are willing to listen.

Listening for God's Word means coming to church.  I hope you will come this Sunday.  We will welcome into our family of faith Clarissa Schuller-Meyer and her son, Nathan, as they are both baptized and Clarissa joins the church.  Baptisms are sacred celebrations, and we are doubly blessed to get to celebrate two of them this Sunday.

Ash Wednesday is this Wednesday.  Join us for pancakes at 6:30 and/or worship at 7:15.  Please let us know if you are joining us for pancakes.  Ash Wednesday begins the 40 day period of Lent leading up to Easter.  This year our Lent theme is "Journey Inward/Journey Forward".  Discipleship is a journey that is first lived inwardly and introspectively, especially during Lent as we do some "spring cleaning of our souls", but then it is lived forward in service.  I hope you will join us during the Sundays of Lent.

Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday.

Annie

February 3, 2013

Dear Faith Des Peres Community,

Don't forget your canned goods this Sunday!  This is "Souper Bowl of Caring" Sunday.  For those of you not familiar with Souper Bowl of Caring, it's a project that was started many years ago by a youth group who decided to collect cans of soup on Super Bowl Sunday as their way of "tackling" hunger.  The project has grown by leaps and bounds.  This year alone, 596 groups have collected ove $2 million dollars worth of cash and food.

This Sunday, bring in your cans of food (it can be any canned food item) and "vote" for your Super Bowl winner with your canned goods.  All food and/or cash donated on Sunday will go directly to Food Outreach.  

I hope to see you Sunday!

Blessings,

Annie

Sunday, January 27

Dear Faith Des Peres Community,

First, if you are reading this before 7pm Friday night, don't forget game night tonight in the Gathering Space!  Bring food, drinks, munchies, a game and your competitive edge.  Or, just show up, grab a chair, and join in the games.  If you've never been, it's a great way to cure the winter doldrums.  Plus, it's fun! This event is for all ages.

On Sunday we're hearing one of my favorite scripture readings from Luke 4:14-21.  It's the story of Jesus' first sermon and let's just say it didn't go so well.  The congregation ran him out of town and off a cliff. Yikes!  What would get them so riled up?  Well, Jesus' vision for ministry is what got them so riled up.  In a sense, this scene is Jesus’ inaugural address.  Now, since we recently heard Obama’s inaugural address, either live or from snippets on the news, we know that inaugural addresses are important.  They lay out the President’s vision for the country. Likewise, Jesus lays out his vision for ministry which, it turns out, wasn't such good news to his listeners.  His words were challenging, to say the least.

I hope to see you on Sunday, and I hope you will come to hear Good News even if it is challenging.  Bring an open mind, bring a friend, and bring a discerning spirit.  I hope to see you in church.

Blessings,

Annie

Sunday, January 20

Dear Faith Des Peres Community,

I have been listening with interest to the NPR Morning Edition Series titled "Losing Our Religion".  The series covers the rise of the "nones", the growing demographic that sights no religion as their religion of preference.  I've been particularly struck by the words from people who used to believe in God but no longer do because the old religious answers do not satisfy them.  Many of these people lost their faith when tragedy struck them.  They asked "Where is God", and surmised that God is no where to be found. And yet, many of them said they really want to believe in God.  

Their words and thoughts are powerful, and they are worth our time to engage, especially if we want to remain relevant with a younger generation.  So this week we will engage their questions and strugglesand explore different answers to the age-old question, "Where is God when tragedy strikes?"

In order to prepare for Sunday, I encourage you to listen to the NPR series (click the link above) and read John 2:1-11, the gospel reading for Sunday.  It is the story of the wedding at Cana.  In this story we find a number of different responses to the question of where is God when tragedy strikes.  Some of those responses may surprise you and some of them may trouble you.  But, we must engage the responses even if we struggle with them.  It is a sign of faith to struggle with these deep questions and to struggle with God.  It is also a hopeful sign, for in new interpretations, we may engage new people . . .perhaps some of the "nones", who desperately want to believe in God but who cannot believe in old answers that no longer satisfy their spiritual yearnings.

I hope you will join us on Sunday.  Bring your thinking cap, bring a friend, and say a prayer for everyone who wants to believe but cannot.

Blessings,

Annie